6 Reliably Chic Ways to Mix and Match Dining Room Chairs

The key to a successful mix-and-match is, if you think about it, an element of consistency (the whole "match" part of the equation). Without it, nuance can devolve quickly into a hot mess. A case in point: dining room chairs. Rather than springing for a whole one-note set—and the accompanying price tag—designers are often choosing to vary the styles of the seats around the table. "Try imagining a grid of qualities—height, width, color, material, arms vs. armless, upholstered seat vs. hard seat," advises Alex Kalita, a designer and cofounder at Common Bond Design, "and vary the chairs in just a few categories, keeping the others consistent." Below, we've broken out a few more specific strategies to inspire your mixed-and-matched chair look.

Stick to One Shape, Vary Colors

In abcV, a new restaurant from ABC Home, a handful of chartreuse chairs punctuate the otherwise all-white seating—but every single chair is the same shape. The accents "carry your eye through the restaurant," says CEO and Creative Director Paulette Cole. "Mixing and matching is one of our credos, but it does have to be done with intention." On the residential scale, the same strategy applies: Pick a shape and vary the colors, as Kalita did in this project using Eames shell chairs:

Consider a Bench

Whether built into the corner, banquette-style, or free-floating along one side of the table, using a bench instead of a few chairs (or two benches, as shown below) is an easy way to add variation without going nuts.

A New York kitchen is furnished with a table, sofa, and bench (its cushion covered in a Holly Hunt leather), all from Room.

William Waldron

Stick to an Age (or Geographic) Range

As styles take a while to evolve, limiting yourself to a general age range or geography of antique chairs (or wear-level, if you're using vintage rather than antiques) will bring a visual consistency. Then, do all the mixing and matching you want.

Choose Complementary Shapes

A set of three angular, squared-off metal chairs add a little bit of levity to more curvaceous antique pieces—the height is consistent, so they don't look amiss.

A 1970s dining table is grouped with antique and modern chairs in the dining room of a Roman home; above the 18th-century French console displaying Chinese vases hangs a golden wall sculpture by Klaus Münch.

FOLLOW US

Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement (effective 1/2/2014) and Privacy Policy (effective 1/2/2014). Architectural Digest may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our Affiliate Partnerships with retailers. Your California Privacy Rights (effective 1/2/2014). The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with prior written permission of Condé Nast.